A forgotten figure from Liverpool's past is still plugging away at the age of 35. A former international colleague has explained the drive to keep on going.
13:56, 12 Mar 2026
Mario Balotelli of Liverpool warms up prior to kickoff during the Barclays Premier League match between Southampton and Liverpool at St Mary's Stadium on February 22, 2015 in Southampton, England.
A former Liverpool flop is currently on his 14th club, still going strong at the age of nearly 36.(Image: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
It could always be worse for Liverpool. Reigning Premier League champion (at least for a while longer) and competing in the Champions League knockout phases, it's important to remember just how far the team has come in a reasonably short space of time.
Barely more than a decade ago, prospects at Anfield looked hopelessly bleak. Having come so close to a Luis Suarez inspired title in 2014, the Reds suddenly looked miles off it once again, with no end in sight to the 25-year title drought.
Hope was just around the corner in the form of Jurgen Klopp. But before he came through the door, Brendan Rodgers had contrived to throw away Liverpool's first Champions League campaign in years, slumping from second to sixth on the domestic front for good measure.
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It was an ignominious season from beginning to end, with the nadir potentially coming with the pre-match admission of defeat at the Bernabeu. Rodgers named Steven Gerrard, Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling on the bench, essentially throwing in the towel in the kind of fixture for which fans had been waiting many years.
Joining the trio on the bench that day was an infamous Liverpool flop. Not entirely through fault of his own, he has become a symbol of everything that went wrong with the club at that time.
Losing Suarez was always going to be tough, but Liverpool had money to replace him. Daniel Sturridge had been almost as impressive in 2013/14, so finding him a decent strike partner could surely maintain the title-chasing momentum.
Liverpool scoured the globe. It returned with Rickie Lambert and Mario Balotelli.
Rickie Lambert of Liverpool comes on as a second half substitute for Mario Balotelli of Liverpool uring the Barclays Premier League match between Liverpool and Everton at Anfield on September 27, 2014 in Liverpool, England.
Rickie Lambert comes on for Mario Balotelli (or "how to traumatize a Liverpool fan with one photo")(Image: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
There's little doubt that Balotelli was doomed from the start. Rodgers publicly scoffed at the idea of signing him, but as other prospects came to nothing and the deadline ticked ever closer, Liverpool pulled the trigger on the move.
In hindsight, the club would have been far better off persevering with Iago Aspas, who is now the 18th-highest scorer in La Liga history and just seven goals behind Suarez. But he was shipped out, with no way back after that corner, and the onus fell on Balotelli to somehow replace one of the most talented players the club has ever seen.
For his part, Aspas is still going strong at Celta Vigo. But what might be less well-known is that Balotelli is still plugging away as well, with his latest adventure coming in the UAE second tier.
Turning 36 in the summer, Balotelli has now turned out for 14 different clubs, with Al Ittifaq the latest. He arrives there via stints in Turkey, Switzerland and back in Italy over the past few years, moving from Genoa in January.
Mario Balotelli of Genoa looks on prior to kick-off in the Serie A match between Genoa and Parma at Stadio Luigi Ferraris on January 12, 2025 in Genoa, Italy.
Balotelli made just six appearances in 18 months for Genoa, scoring no goals. He left for the UAE in January. (Image: Simone Arveda/Getty Images)
His former international teammate Giuseppe Rossi has explained why he thinks Balotelli keeps going. He believes the pair of them share an insatiable love for the game:
"He still wants to be involved, he still wants to play," Rossi told GOAL, in association with ToonieBet. "He still enjoys it.
"I remember playing with him on the national team: he was always somebody that loved being around the ball, being around the pitch. That's something that every footballer loves.
"Still to this day, yes, I've been retired for the past two, two-and-a-half years but I'm always on the pitch with my boys at the [New York] Cosmos and training with them, it's hard to stay away from the game. So, I'm sure that he has that itch and that care for the sport still."
(For some much-needed context, Rossi is a part-owner of a team that has revived the New York Cosmos name. Its inaugural campaign in the third-tier USL League One gets underway imminently.)
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Balotelli's enthusiasm for the game never really shone through at Anfield, but we'll take Rossi's word for it. And while Liverpool fans will wish him well in this latest chapter, the maligned striker is also a reminder of the progress that has been made.